Brother of Casey Anthony testifies Zenaida Gonzalez of Kissimmee is not "Nanny"

Watch the video:

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/caylee-anthony/orl-casey-anthony-brother-deposition-022809,0,2474188.story


Casey Anthony's nanny remarks have 'never been in regards to this Zenaida,' Lee Anthony said under oath during a deposition Friday.

By Sarah Lundy Sentinel Staff Writer
February 28, 2009

Casey Anthony's brother, Lee, said under oath Friday that Zenaida Gonzalez -- a Kissimmee woman suing his sister for defamation -- is not the Zenaida Fernandez-Gonzalez his sister claims vanished with her child.
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He said that Friday during more than three hours of questioning by Gonzalez's attorney John Morgan, who conducted the deposition in his firm's mock courtroom in downtown Orlando."This has never been in regards to this Zenaida," Lee Anthony said, talking to Gonzalez, who attended the deposition.
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His sister described a different woman: someone in her 20s who has no children. She is 5 feet 6 to 5 feet 7 and 120 pounds. Gonzalez -- the woman suing his sister -- is a 38-year-old mother of six.
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Gonzalez's attorneys said they took a big step Friday in clearing their client's name."We now have a family member say under oath that it ain't this Zenaida Gonzalez and that's a good day for her," said her other attorney Keith Mitnik. Gonzalez is suing Casey Anthony in civil court for more than $15,000 in damages. She claims she lost her job and suffered public humiliation and emotional stress after Casey Anthony identified a nanny who took her child as Zenaida Fernandez-Gonzalez.
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Anthony told investigators that she left 2-year-old Caylee with a woman named Zenaida Fernandez-Gonzalez at Sawgrass Apartments and that the two later vanished. Zenaida Gonzalez, the one suing Casey Anthony, once visited Sawgrass but did not know Anthony or Caylee.
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On Friday, Lee Anthony and his attorney, Thomas Luka, were prepared to leave if the media were allowed to attend the deposition. Before they arrived at the Morgan & Morgan law firm, attorneys told more than a dozen reporters and photographers that they would have to stay out of the room. A copy of the video deposition and a transcript became public later Friday when they were filed in court. (Thomas Luka and Lee were so sure he wouldn't be testifying that Luka had set a court date on a different case for 10:30. Guess he didn't know that whether the media was there or not, the deposition would be released to the public afterward anyway.)
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No major revelations emerged from Anthony's questioning, but some details were clarified. Lee Anthony told the attorneys that his sister admitted lying to the investigators about what happened when Caylee disappeared.
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Shortly after she was released from jail in August, Casey Anthony told Lee Anthony that Caylee was taken from Jay Blanchard Park by Zenaida Fernandez-Gonzalez to teach Casey Anthony a lesson. The nanny sent messages to Casey Anthony via the Internet. His sister claimed that if she alerted the police, Zenaida Fernandez-Gonzalez would harm Anthony's family. He doesn't know what lesson the nanny wanted to teach his sister.
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Lee Anthony related the story to his mother, Cindy Anthony, but not to investigators. He also said he never found any communication between his sister and the nanny on any computer. (And...why does he need imunity to testify in the criminal case? I forget...hmm)
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Morgan asked Lee Anthony if he considered whether his sister was responsible for Caylee's disappearance. But Luka stopped Anthony from answering the question.
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Near the end of the interview, Morgan brought up Caylee's memorial service held this month. He asked Lee Anthony what he meant by the "CMA" he referred to during the ceremony. Anthony, during the service, mentioned a promise he made to "CMA.""Speaking to Caylee ... I made a promise to her early, early on in July that no matter what it took, I was going to find out the truth," Anthony explained to Morgan.
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And even though he admits that she lied to him, her parents and the police, he believes everything his sister tells him.

Lawyer: Casey Anthony's brother won't talk if media show up at deposition

Sarah Lundy Sentinel Staff Writer
February 27, 2009

Lee Anthony isn't going to answer questions under oath if the media show up for his deposition this morning, his attorney Thomas Luka said.

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The pair will leave if Keith Mitnik with the Morgan & Morgan law firm lets reporters attend the questioning, he said. Luka said he would file a motion asking a judge to keep his client from answering questions in front of media and would challenge Mitnik to explain to the court why he allowed the media to be there.

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This is part of an ongoing defamation case involving Zenaida Gonzalez, a 38-year-old Kissimmee mother, and Lee Anthony's sister, Casey Anthony.

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In July, Anthony told investigators that she left 2-year-old Caylee with a nanny named Zenaida Fernandez-Gonzalez at Sawgrass Apartments and the two later vanished. Zenaida Gonzalez, the one suing Casey Anthony, once visited Sawgrass but did not know Anthony and Caylee. In her lawsuit, Gonzalez says she has lost her job and suffered humiliation and public embarrassment since Casey Anthony said a woman with her name was Caylee's baby sitter. She is seeking more than $15,000 in punitive damages.

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Mitnik said he's tired of people avoiding scheduled depositions.

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Anthony's parents, George and Cindy Anthony, were supposed to be questioned Thursday, but the depositions were postponed after an emergency hearing Wednesday. Orange Circuit Court Judge Jose R. Rodriguez will rule under what conditions the couple will be interviewed.

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"It's getting out of hand," Mitnik said of Lee Anthony's plans. "We have a lawsuit ... Everyone doesn't get to keep putting things off. Enough is enough."Some media attorneys say reporters don't have much say about whether they can be present or not.

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Attorney Alison Steele, who has represented a number of outlets, including the St. Petersburg Times, and is not involved in this case, said both sides have to agree for reporters to sit in on depositions."In general in Florida, there is no First Amendment right for members of the news media to attend if one or more parties don't want them there," she said.

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But a judge could rule in the media's favor and allow their entry, she added.

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What is it with these people? Do they think because Casey murdered her child and her parents flew the country to appear on every news program possible, that they are above the law now? Judge Rodriguez should slap a contempt of court charge on all their asses. See how they like sitting the the jail themselves. I'll bet they would testify soon enough. It just gets worse the farther it goes. If you go by the interviews the Casey fan club gave shortly after Caylee's "disappearance", they have all the answers right there.

Media Cameras Welcome At Lee Anthony Deposition

Gonzalez Looks Into Legally Changing Her Name
February 26, 2009

Right: Lee Anthony with his usual surly expression. I wish someone would tell him the only people who still shave their heads are old guys and skinheads. But that's me...

ORLANDO, Fla. -- A lawyer for Casey Anthony's brother Lee said his client will give sworn testimony Friday morning in connection with the defamation suit brought by Zenaida Gonzalez.

Gonzalez has the same name as the person Casey Anthony named as her daughter Caylee's nanny. Casey Anthony said Caylee's nanny kidnapped the toddler last summer.

Casey Anthony is currently being held on murder charges at the Orange County Jail.
Gonzalez said she is looking to have her name legally changed.

Television cameras will be invited into the downtown courtroom Friday, according to attorney John Morgan.

Morgan said Gonzalez's name was taken in a public forum, so it should not be cleared behind closed doors.

Lee Anthony's attorney said Anthony wants to get the deposition over with. He said he knows nothing about Gonzalez.

Gonzalez's lawyer said his client may claim not to know much, but they still have plenty of questions to ask.

The deposition is slated for 9 a.m.

Anthony's Family Subpoenaed In Gonzalez Case

Anthony Given 30 Days To Answer
February 3, 2009

ORLANDO, Fla. -- A series of questions written on behalf of the woman Casey Anthony claimed was Caylee’s baby sitter has been given to Anthony to answer within 30 days.

Meanwhile, Anthony’s parents, Cindy and George, and her brother, Lee, also were subpoenaed in the civil case.

Zenaida Gonzalez, 37, was named by Anthony in July as the woman who kidnapped her daughter, Caylee.

Gonzalez denied knowing the Anthonys and has since sued Anthony for defamation of character.
The questions for Anthony were constructed by Circuit Judge Jose R. Rodriguez in an effort to assist Gonzalez in clearing her name in the case.

A month after Caylee’s disappearance, Anthony told investigators the last time she saw her daughter was when she left her with Gonzalez at the Sawgrass Apartments.

The following are some of the questions submitted to Casey to answer by the end of the month:
"To your knowledge, how many children does she have?"
"What kind of car does she drive?"
"Do you know who killed Caylee?"
"Were you involved in the death of Caylee?"
Click here for the entire list.

Do you reckon they will ALL take the 5th?

Lee Anthony's Attorney Says Client May Be Charged

Lee Anthony's Attorney Says Client May Be Charged
Attorney: Lee Anthony Could Face Obstruction Of Justice Charge

January 26, 2009
Lee Anthony’s attorney is speculating that his client may be charged in connection with his actions while his niece, Caylee Anthony, was missing.

Casey Anthony, Lee Anthony’s sister, is charged with Caylee’s murder. Caylee was 2 when she was reported missing in July. Her remains were found near the Anthony family home in December.

His attorney, Tom Luka, said the fact that Lee Anthony has not received a subpoena to testify could signal that the state may be looking to file charges against him. If he was subpoenaed, anything he said at a hearing could not be used against him in subsequent criminal charges.

"There were a number of instances where he was acting on behalf of his sister, or on behalf of law enforcement, that now could be seen as something less than benign or could be seen as hindering the investigation instead of assisting it," Luka said.

Luka said he fears his client may be charged with obstruction of justice or evidence tampering.
Lee Anthony has also been under other family related stresses, his attorney said.

"He’s struggling with the grief of the death of his niece, he is struggling with the fact that his sister, who he is very close to, is in jail and facing life in prison," Luka said. "He is facing the fact that the economic situation in his house is not the best."

Lee Anthony has been working 18-hour days arranging parking areas for the Super Bowl. He also moved home to save money on rent.

Meanwhile, a new witness list has been filed by the prosecution in the case against Casey Anthony.

The state filed the witness list Monday morning. It included the names of more than 140 potential witnesses, including Zenaida Gonzalez and several members of Anthony’s extended family.

Also on Monday, Anthony’s defense attorney, Jose Baez, filed new court documents Monday morning. The documents asked for unspecified sanctions against the state for failing to furnish the defense team with evidence from two experts in the case.

For the full list of witnesses, hit this:

http://www.wesh.com/news/18565575/detail.html

Reports Say Casey Anthony's Brother Not Cooperating

ORLANDO -- There have been reports that sheriff's investigators want to talk with Lee Anthony, Casey Anthony's brother, but that he has not been cooperative.

News 13 attempted to talk to Lee Anthony's attorney on Monday, but he said he was unavailable for comment. Also, the Orange County Sheriff's Office said Sgt. John Allan, the lead investigator in the Casey Anthony case would not comment on the reports.

What News 13 has learned is that the Anthonys have not been talking with the sheriff's office recently. News 13 was told the Thursday before George Anthony disappeared that Allan said if the Anthonys would come forward with any "truthful" information, they would be more than happy to sit down and talk with them. It shows a clear rift between the Anthonys and the agency investigating their daughter's case.

Anthony Continues Stay In Hospital

George Anthony continues to be monitored at Halifax Medical Center in Daytona Beach and his lawyer, Brad Conway, said it will be later this week before he is released.

Anthony was taken to Halifax Medical Center on Friday after disappearing to a Daytona Beach motel and then sending his family messages saying he wanted to kill himself and that he wanted to be with his murdered 2-year-old granddaughter, Caylee.

Police said Anthony had taken several sleeping pills, and an unfinished suicide letter was found in his vehicle. Anthony is being held for psychiatric observation under the Baker Act.

Conway said he didn't think Anthony was ready to be released, saying he needs help to begin the healing process. The hospital confirmed Anthony's status.

"Mr. Anthony is still in stable condition and his discharge date has not yet been determined, so there really isn't any new updates right now," said Salina Wang, a spokeswoman for Halifax Medical Center.

Appearing on a national TV interview, Conway also said he hopes to set the burial plans for Caylee Anthony this week.

The grandparents have held off on a burial so the defense team for Caylee's mother, Casey, could examine the remains that were found in Orange County last month. However, Conway said it is time to get on with it.

Man Who Found Caylee's Remains Denies Involvement

Tuesday, January 13, 2009 – updated: 6:14 pm EST January 13, 2009
ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. -- The meter reader who discovered Caylee Anthony's remains in December spoke at length Tuesday for the first time. Roy Kronk did an exclusive TV interview with Good Morning America (watch video images).

GMA INTERVIEW: Kronk Breaks Silence Images

VIDEO REPORT: Kronk Gives First Interview

RAW INTERVIEW: Bill Sheaffer Says Kronk May Help Defense

Orange County meter reader Roy Kronk told ABC's Good Morning America that he has been vilified, so he decided to tell his story. Kronk said life has been turned upside down since he found Caylee Anthony's body on December 11 and does not believe the media spotlight has been kind to him.

"No good deed goes unpunished," Kronk said.
He told GMA's Robin Roberts he has never met the Anthony family, that he had nothing to do with Caylee Anthony's disappearance and that no one tipped him off.

"Nobody tipped me off," Kronk said. "I figured this out by myself."
The former bounty hunter/bondsman said he just followed his own instincts when he was in the area in August for work.

"It just kinda made sense to me, if you were to get rid of something like that, and with the smell of swamp decay on either side of the road, it would be a good place to hide it," he said.
He then talked about the sheriff's office response to his calls in August.

"I drove over there. I called. The officer showed up. I showed him a picture of a snake that we had found on Monday. He looked kinda shaken up. It was a six-and-a-half-foot diamondback rattlesnake. He pulled his baton out and went down to the water's edge. He just swept his head back and forth. [He said,] 'I don't see anything' and pretty much that was it. He told me I was wasting the county's time and that they had all these other tips and that was it," Kronk explained.

Kronk then spoke of the day in December when he found a skull that was later found to be part of Caylee's remains.

"In December you went back to the same area. Why did you go back?" GMA's Robin Roberts asked Kronk.

"I had to go to the bathroom, so I went in there and I looked over and I saw a shape that didn't look quite right to me and when I pulled the bag up I basically looked down and there it was," he said.

The Orange County Sheriff's Office is still in the middle of its internal investigation of the deputy who met Kronk on August 13. The deputy, identified January 13 by the Orange County Sheriff's Office as Richard Cain, is still on duty in the area for now.

WFTV legal analyst Bill Sheaffer told Eyewitness News that the meter reader, Roy Kronk, could end up helping Casey's defense (watch Sheaffer interview). Sheaffer said morning news viewers were not the only ones watching Kronk. Casey Anthony's defense team was likely to dissect every word, looking for inconsistencies in Kronk's statements.

"The prosecution has to be very nervous about a key witness such as he going on national television and making statements," Sheaffer said.

LAWYER SAYS LEE DENIED HE WAS ON PHONE WITH P.I.

It's some of the biggest evidence yet in the case against Casey and Eyewitness News and WFTV.com were the first to obtain the video of an Anthony family private investigator at the crime scene a full month before Caylee's body was found (watch video scene-by-scene images).

LEE'S ATTORNEY: Portion Of Interview With Tom Luka

VIDEO REPORT: Lee's Attorney Comments On Video

P.I.'s VIDEO OBTAINED: Raw Video Scene-By-Scene Images

Eyewitness News is working to find out who told that private eye to go there. The video showed that private investigator talking on the phone to somebody and detectives are pulling records to find out whom.

No matter why the Anthony family's private investigator was at the scene, conducting a search a month before Caylee's remains were found, the big question still is who was on the other end of the cell phone with private eye Dominic Casey in November, possibly directing him. Some wonder whether it was Lee Anthony and even his own attorney checked into it.

Eyewitness News watched the video with Lee Anthony's attorney, Tom Luka (watch interview).

The video shows the Anthony family's private eye, Dominic Casey, prodding and poking the ground at the crime scene and on the cell phone with someone.

"Is it Lee?" WFTV reporter Kathi Belich asked Luka on Monday. "No, not that I know of. He denied ever talking to him," he said.

But Eyewitness News uncovered video of Lee Anthony and Dominic Casey at the jail together right after Lee's sister Casey was arrested there. So, Kathi Belich asked again.

"Is it Lee on the phone with Dominic Casey?" Belich asked Luka. "As far as I know, as far as my client is concerned, it's not him on the phone on November 15th 2008," Luka said. "Could it be somebody who Lee spoke with who then went to Dominic Casey and provided information?" Belich asked. "In the realm of speculation, it could've been anyone," Luka said.

Even though last week Eyewitness News heard that only Dominic Casey's colleague, private eye Jim Hoover who shot it, had a copy of the videotape at the scene where Caylee's remains were found almost a month later, Luka said he saw it last week and talked to Dominic Casey about it. Then he backtracked.

"How did you see it last week? Who showed it to you last week?" Belich asked Luka.
"Well, I take that back," Luka said. "I was not shown it. When it was on TV I saw it."
"Well, it wasn't on TV until last night," Belich told Luka.

"Well, I take that back. I did not see it. Did I see it? No, I did not see that video. I take that back. That was not the video I saw," he said.

Dominic Casey previously told Eyewitness News he was at the scene in November to rule out the possibility that Caylee's remains could be there. Then he said he was there to rule out that the area was a teen hangout years ago. Lee's attorney, though, told Eyewitness News that Dominic Casey told him he was there to rule out a psychic's tip.

During all that time, the Anthonys and their private investigators were insisting that Caylee was still alive.

LEGAL ANALYST QUESTIONS IF P.I. WAS TRYING TO HELP CASEY DEFENSE

Eyewitness News uncovered a new theory about why the Anthonys' private investigator was poking through the crime scene on videotape a month before Caylee's remains were discovered there. WFTV's legal analyst wonders if it all could have been done to help in Casey Anthony's defense.

"He is either inept, if we're to believe he was actually investigating the crime scene in order to locate the body, or he's inept as an actor," WFTV legal analyst Bill Sheaffer told Eyewitness News.

Sheaffer said, no matter why the Anthonys' private eye was there a month before the remains were found, chances are great he had inside information.

"If he's just out there in order to make a defense tape then he has to know where the body is in order not to stumble upon the body," Sheaffer said.

Sheaffer said the defense might have wanted to try to show the body was not there in November when Casey was in jail. So that, if it were to be found by detectives after that, the defense could try to claim someone else left it there.

"The lack of outrage on the part of that attorney and the family speaks volumes," Sheaffer said.

Charges for Lee, Casey Anthony's Brother?

Megyn Kelly sat in for Greta VanSusteren last night as host for On the Record, foxnews.com. A quick search this morning found nothing in cyberspace on the topic except for the transcript, which I am posting here.

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

This is a rush transcript from "On the Record ," December 29, 2008. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

MEGYN KELLY, FOX NEWS GUEST HOST: Well, could Casey Anthony's brother Lee soon be joining her behind bars? Casey has been charged with the murder of her daughter Caylee, and now her brother Lee might be charged with obstruction of justice and aiding and abetting Casey.
Lee Anthony's lawyer Thomas Luka joins me now. Tom, good evening to you.

THOMAS LUKA, ATTORNEY: Good evening, Megyn.

KELLY: What do you make of these charges, these potential charges? What are you hearing is the possibly basis behind them?

LUKA: Well, first of all, there has been no announcement, formal or otherwise, that there are charges pending against Lee Anthony. This is all speculation and rumor at this time.

What I can tell you is that there has been speculation that he may be charged as an accessory after the fact for some sort of obstruction of justice charge.

The law in Florida, the statue in Florida dealing with obstruction of justice is very broad and gives prosecutors a wide latitude to use that power to charge individuals in order to motivate them to testify against other defendants.

KELLY: Right--in other words, this could be an effort to try to get them to tell them what they want to here with respect to Casey, or it could be that they think he actually did obstruct their investigation.

Did they give you any clue, Tom, what they may be thinking, what act think might be looking at that amount to obstruction of justice?

LUKA: I do not know. I can tell me that Mr. Anthony has been extremely cooperative with the police. Anything and everything, he has done. If there is anything that might throw a shadow or might conflict with any of the police evidence, it is that he has from the beginning has asserted his sister's innocence and has also asserted that this is a missing-person case and not a homicide case.

Now that the dynamic of the case has changed, obviously that is no longer the case.

Watch the interview

KELLY: How does he deal with that, Tom? Because we all watched him so many times come to his sister's defense and say, as we heard the grandparents say, they believe they would find little Caylee, and now we know, of course, they have, but she was found dead. How is he now, how does he deal with that news?

LUKA: Well, he, like the Anthonys and the rest of the community here in Orlando, are grieving. There are many broken hearts in our community right now. It was not just the Anthonys who thought that Caylee would be coming home safe.
There were many people not only here in Florida but all over the country who were hoping and praying that she would be found safe. Obviously, that is not the case, and we have to more forward from there.
He is grieving along with his family. He is trying to support his family as best as he can. But he is continuing to cooperate with the investigation and wherever it leads now.

KELLY: Does he still believe in the innocence of his sister?

LUKA: At this point, he has not made a determination as to that fact right now. That fact has yet to even be determined--that fact can only be determined by a court of law.
I can tell you that he is wanting to find truth in this case, just like everyone else is, both prosecution and defense, wherever that may lead. And I can tell you that Mr. Anthony, that is all he cares about at this point.
Whether it leads to the innocence of his sister or her guilt, he cares about the truth, and that is what is most important to him as far as it concerns his niece Caylee.

KELLY: Tom, thanks for being here.

LUKA: Thank you.

KELLY: All the best.

It was fairly obvious the first night the Anthony's found out that Caylee was "missing". Cindy's statement to Casey, "what have you done?" and later Lee's conversation with Casey on the phone when he advises her, "the truth doesn't hurt."

Although I have had the urge to slap Cindy a few times, my heart really does go out to the Pleasea's and Anthony's. I've tried to put myself in Cindy's shoes, but only one shoe fits. On the one foot, if my daughter murdered my grandchild, as much as I love each one of them, I could not leave her twisting in the wind alone. No matter what she's done, even if it is the worst thing in the world, she's my daughter and has my unconditional love. On the other foot, I wouldn't be in front of cameras every day making up excuses and running my mouth, lying and blaming everyone around her, except her daughter.

Undoubtedly this is not the life George and Cindy (or Lee)

had envisioned for themselves or their family, but it is what they have left. Hiding or destroying evidence was/is either extreme stupidity, or intentional, making it a crime.

Particularly memorable was the candlelight vigil where Cindy lost it and started yelling at law enforcement, the media and the vigil attendees that they should "get out there and find her granddaughter." The irony was not lost on me that during the last five months, if she had taken a short walk through and around her neighborhood, she may have found Caylee herself.

New Twist In Casey Anthony Case

This article has a high eww factor. Warning.


Thursday, September 4, 2008

Brother may be tied to case
by Rozzie Franco and Nada Taha, 540 WFLA/FNN


ORLANDO, FLA. -- The latest twist in the Casey Anthony case comes from the man who at one point gave her a “get out of jail free” card and may tie her brother, Lee Anthony, into the saga.
Bounty Hunter Leonard Padilla made national headlines when he bonded Anthony out of jail, but although he’s back in California, he’s not keeping himself too far away from the case of the missing 3-year-old toddler, Caylee Anthony.

Padilla said that he believes something didn’t add up about the preliminary DNA test results that came back last week from the trunk of Anthony’s car. Officials found strands of hair that they ruled could have either been Casey’s or Caylee’s.

“The Feds released information that the hair was either the mother’s or the daughter’s; they didn’t distinguish,” Padilla said. “Why would they not know whether it was the daughter or the mother? They didn’t say it was Caylee’s.”

Padilla said that officials ruled it was Caylee’s hair just by a process of elimination because the hair had a death ring around it and they know Casey is alive. The fact that the DNA is identical has something to do with who the father is, Padilla said.

“Would the DNA from a child resulting from a union from Lee and Casey have basically the same characteristics? Making the preliminary DNA check not definitive as to who the hair samples are from,” he said.

Padilla’s statements come at a time when police have filed more charges against Casey Anthony, who has already been arrested twice. Officials charged Casey Wednesday with two counts of uttering a forged check, two counts of petty theft and two counts of fraudulent use of personal identification.